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Original poster

Neighbours think my drive is a right of way

207 replies

Runningonjammiedodgers · 08/04/2024 12:21

Pic attached.

I live in a row of terreced houses. My house (1) has a path to the front door and a drive way next to my house. Houses 2-5 share a path that leads to the road. There is a strip of grass in front of their houses and then their parking spaces.

Neighbours in house 2 used to walk over the grass to their front door to avoid going the long way up the path. They (and their guests) have now taking to walking down my driveway along my path and jumping over the flower bed in the middle to get to their door. It's really pissing me off! It's my property being treated as a right of way and they walk right past my living room window so there is no privacy. But it's also not causing any damage or inconvenience. Just annoying as hell.

AIBU to ask them to stop using my property as a public footpath? Or do I just need to suck it up?

Neighbours think my drive is a right of way
OP posts:
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14
ggggggooooo · 09/04/2024 08:12

These two ends. Can they be blocked. Is the end of the car park space onto grass or paved. If it's grass can you put in a fence of some sort?

Neighbours think my drive is a right of way
ggggggooooo · 09/04/2024 08:10

@Runningonjammiedodgers

So they do this? Hmm. That is so annoying. They cross over your car parks and your path. I know it sounds petty but most of us would find this annoying. You just feel intruded upon. We like our private space to be private and respected. God knows we have little enough privacy these days.

Your parking up against your flower bed works but as you say it means your passengers are forced to crawl out of your side.

Anything you put there will also affect your passengers so it's tricky

It's about making it more^^ annoying for them to go your way than the other way. Can you get a grit tub or some other big but not ugly thing to put across the end of your car park space? Or a sack of compost that you are planning to use for the flower bed and leave it there a few weeks or just something that establishes a new habit from them?

And create something tall in the bed between your two houses. So they have to go over onto the grass anyway thus negating the benefits of going around your car parks? And continue with the squeezed parking for a bit. Just make it so it's just too much hassle for them so they develop a new habit of going the other way around.
I take it the ground is tarmac so you can't put a little chain fence along the end of the car park to block the route?

Neighbours think my drive is a right of way
RosaCaramella · 09/04/2024 03:39

Is the grassy bit wet? Is that the reason they won’t walk over it? Do the occupants of no. 3,4 and 5 walk over the grassy bit direct to their door?
I’d kill them with kindness and surprise them with some stepping stones (or even second hand slabs from marketplace) to give them a direct route over the grass to their door. It would be obviously rude of them not to take you up on your grand gesture of neighbourliness.

KittenKins · 09/04/2024 03:11

If you wish to avoid confrontation, as some people do maybe go down the route that you are getting a little jumpy with people passing the window & you'd prefer they avoided this going forward.

Annielou67 · 09/04/2024 00:25

Yep. A gate and a nice rambling rose should deter that.

Sendme2Greece · 08/04/2024 23:41

Are their pathways shared so technically no2 walks past houses 5, 4 and 3? If so, maybe they think it doesn't matter and is shorter cutting past your house instead?

YANBU, though. It would annoy me, too. I'm not sure if I'd bother asking, though. I think I'd just block access.

Bananabredd · 08/04/2024 23:31

People are so rude!

Theunamedcat · 08/04/2024 23:13

Rosa rugosa? smells wonderful prickles on prickles once it gets you it doesn't let you go easily

I used it on a teenager who used to hop over his mums fence for a cigarette in my garden planted a clump from my mums garden the swearing was impressive the fighting was ticket worthy fun times 😁 I was half hoping he came back for round two but apparently he learned his lesson

ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 22:33

That's great! They couldn't miss that.

Ultimately I think the neighbours need to get ownership of the strip of grass so they can have sensible paths.

LookItsMeAgain · 08/04/2024 22:31

NamelessNancy · 08/04/2024 12:43

Might something like this work?
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/2967017

I was just going to suggest something like this - it's temporary enough that if you decided to move, they could move with you but they are substantial enough to stop people using your pathway as a right of way.
You need to stop the ROW issue before an actual ROW is established.

Original poster
Runningonjammiedodgers · 08/04/2024 22:30

ggggggooooo · 08/04/2024 22:25

What is this little rectangle. Is this where they walk??8' confused where they walk from can you do the same picture but maybe put some dotted lines showing where they walk

That's a flower bed and my attempt at drawing some abstract flowers. It has a good bit of hight to it, lots of nice shrubs, so they can't walk on it. They go between my flower bed and my car. Which I keep at the end of the driveway to try and make a point.

The car is currently right up against the flowerbed to create a barrier. Kids had no choice but to get out the passenger side it's so close. This is a recent development though and I have yet to see if it has worked.

OP posts:
ggggggooooo · 08/04/2024 22:25

What is this little rectangle. Is this where they walk??8' confused where they walk from can you do the same picture but maybe put some dotted lines showing where they walk

Neighbours think my drive is a right of way
ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 22:16

I like the diagram. I think it makes it very clear the architect has never had a neighbour before.

Original poster
Runningonjammiedodgers · 08/04/2024 22:07

MBappse · 08/04/2024 22:04

It's a parking neighbours thread and no one is commenting on the diagram!??!!

Whilst I appreciate your efforts OP.... I have seen better (colours, shading, annotation, arrows etc) and am still a little confused.

I could have produced better work. I actually have the site plan to hand. But it was done this morning in a fit of rage.

OP posts:
MBappse · 08/04/2024 22:04

It's a parking neighbours thread and no one is commenting on the diagram!??!!

Whilst I appreciate your efforts OP.... I have seen better (colours, shading, annotation, arrows etc) and am still a little confused.

ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 21:59

Runningonjammiedodgers · 08/04/2024 21:55

I actually find myself hiding from them. Instinctively crouching down so I don't obsecure the view INTO MY OWN SODDING LIVING ROOM. Gah!

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Yes, that's totally understandable. I think it would be a very good idea to nip this in the bud with some creative planting.

CatLevelCare · 08/04/2024 21:59

TuckingFerrible · 08/04/2024 18:09

Has anyone suggested penguin bollards yet??

No, but I think someone mentioned a fence or a prickly bush 😂

Original poster
Runningonjammiedodgers · 08/04/2024 21:55

ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 21:38

Or stand right up against the window and smile broadly at them as they go past. That would surprise them.

I actually find myself hiding from them. Instinctively crouching down so I don't obsecure the view INTO MY OWN SODDING LIVING ROOM. Gah!

OP posts:
ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 21:55

Holly is an excellent idea. I would do that.

DisabledDemon · 08/04/2024 21:50

Pyracantha makes a nice prickly hedge and Red Berberis grows very quickly. Holly (Ilex Aquifolium) can be quite a deterrent too!

And if you plant them and they get damaged by them taking a shortcut, you can demand that they replace them!

ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 21:38

Sorry I'm only joking really.

ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 21:38

Or stand right up against the window and smile broadly at them as they go past. That would surprise them.

ItIsntReallyLikeThat · 08/04/2024 21:37

Runningonjammiedodgers · 08/04/2024 21:33

Like a mini Takeshi's Castle? I like it. Could bring in a few inflatables once the weather clears up 👌🏻

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That would be excellent.

I have a wobbly flagstone in the front garden and a lot of rain water gathers under it. When people (by which I mean myself) step on it, it tips suddenly, the water fountains out, and my sock gets soaked. This could add an interesting dimension to the route.

Next on my list would be Himalayan Balsam, which has seed heads that explode when knocked.

Switcher · 08/04/2024 21:35

Stick a cat hose deterrent thing in the grass or flowerbed. If they're surprised just act innocent and say you've been having trouble with cats.

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